The New Stuff

Teen Sued by Apple for Selling White iPhone Kits

When you're young, you'll do pretty much anything to make a buck. Sell burnt CDs out of your locker, place bets on any and every given task, or even rummage through your own mother's purse when she's not around. Fei Lam of Queens, NY had a slightly different system, however. Much more technical and even one that seemed way more advanced at the time, Lam begin peddling fake, white iPhone kits before the much anticipated release of the white iPhone 4 from Apple.

Sometimes raking in up to $8,000 a day selling the faux-equipment (all in a hard day's work, right?), the NY teen and his money-making fiasco were short-lived as Apple found out about his little, under-the-table operation.

After initially and rightfully so, being sued by the multi-billion dollar company, they then dropped the lawsuit, awarding Lam with a breath of fresh air. How it all went down was rather strange, however, as Lam didn't even find out via Apple about his legal problems.

"I came back from school today and saw your email. Lol," Lam told Fast Company in a recent interview, as to how he first learned about the suit.

He then met with Apple's attorney in New York, but the result was no direct legal action taken.

His connection to the mistreated Apple parts was from a man who once worked at Foxcon, Apple's manufacturing facility. Which, to me, seems even dirtier than the kid's involvement.

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Fei Lam, the Queens teen who, for a short while, was making up to $8,000 a day selling kits to make white iPhones, was shut down after Apple found out.

Apple apparently filed--and dropped--a lawsuit against the teen. Fast Company interviewed Lam to find out what he's up to these days, while not battling the Apple legal machine. Apparently, Lam did not find out about the lawsuit straight from Apple.

"I came back from school today and saw your email. Lol," Lam told FC, as to how he first learned about the suit. He went on to say that he will be meeting with Apple's lawyer in New York, but that he won't be accompanied by a lawyer because he "can't afford it anymore."

Lam was able to manufacture his white iPhone kits by getting parts from a man who once worked at Foxconn, Apple's manufacturing facility. He first met the man after receiving a spam email for Apple replacement parts.

"I don't know how the contract works between Foxconn and Apple but the "repair parts" that come out months before actual product release is very weird," said Lam. "I also don't know why the white parts were made. Maybe they were to be thrown out or something. Not sure. It's all very weird."

Weird to say the least, in all regards as to the involvement and relationship between Foxconn, Apple, Lam, and the former Foxconn employee.

As for the kid, escaping with virtually minimal slaps on the wrist, he is on to bigger and better things, ie — website development, yet one day thinks it would be pretty cool and ironic to work for the very company he wronged.